Evidence Brief: Improving the Healthiness of Food Environments in the Caribbean

ABSTRACT

Caribbean countries have a number of issues in common regarding food security: these small open economies have limited agricultural resource bases; their food production is prone to disruption by natural disasters; there is a heavy reliance on imported commodities, as opposed to local food production; and trade liberalization has made relatively cheaper processed energy-dense foods, with high fat, sugar and sodium content, widely available on the domestic market. These factors combined, have resulted in unhealthy food choices and dietary practices among the population and a concomitant increase in the prevalence of obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases. There is consensus among international agencies and the research community, that in order to promote healthier food environments, governments should launch a holistic response targeting seven areas: food composition; food labelling; food promotion; food provision; food retailing; food prices; and trade and foreign investments in food. The ability of Caribbean governments to implement these measures has, however, been constrained due to the challenges which they face in:1. coordinating decision - making across all State levels—a chieving a whole-of government response; 2. gaining broad participation from all sectors of society—the all-of-society approach; and 3. developing and enacting required legislation. These constraints have stymied implementation of a comprehensive and effective response to diet-related non-communicable disease...